Samsung Galaxy Tab A to launch in U.S. on May 1

Samsung on Monday announced that it will begin selling its Galaxy Tab A tablets in the U.S. beginning on May 1. The Galaxy Tab A will be available in two sizes; customers will have the choice between an 8-inch display and a 9.7-inch display.

Both tablets come with relatively affordable price tags and entry-level specs. You'll find a 1.2GHz processor, a 1024 x 768-pixel display on both models, a 2-megapixel front-facing camera, a 5-megapixel rear camera, 1.5GB of RAM, either 16GB or 32GB of storage with support for up to 128GB microSD cards and Android 5.0 Lollipop. The tablets will also ship with Microsoft's suite of apps including PowerPoint, Excel, Word and 100GB of OneDrive storage.

Customers interested in either model can preorder directly from Samsung beginning now. The 8-inch Galaxy Tab A will set you back $229.99, while the 9.7-inch model is priced at $299.99. A special third model will also retail for $349.99 and includes an S Pen, though that will launch later on May 17. The Galaxy Tab A will otherwise be available from Best Buy, HH Gregg and Amazon beginning May 1.